Ditching-machine



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet l.

J. L. HOUSE.

DITOHING MACHINE. No. 289,839. Patentd Dec. .11, 1883.

N. PETERS. Photo-Lithographer, wmin mn. D. c.

STATES NIFTE Erica. I

,ATENT DITQHINGK-MACHINE.

EPECIFICATIGN forming part of Letters Patent No. 289,839, dated December 11,'1883 Application filed May 17, 1883. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, J OSEPH LEROY HOUSE, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Hutchinson, in the county of McLeod, in the State of Minnesota, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Ditching Machines, of which the following specification is a full, clear, and exact description, reference being also had to the accompanying drawings.

This invention relates to ditching machines; and it consists in the construction and arrange ment of parts hereinafter shown, and then sought to be specifically defined by the claims.

In the drawings, Figure lis aside elevation, and Fig. 2 is a front elevation, of the machine complete. Fig. 3 is an enlarged detached perspective view of one of the side cutters. Fig. 4 is a cross-section on the lines a: w of Figs. 1 and 3; Fig. 5, perspective views of one of the guide-frames for the mechanism for raising and lowering the forward end of the plow. Fig. 6 are details illustrating the manner of adjusting the side cutters. Fig. 7 is a plan view, and Fig. 8 is arear elevation, of themachine. Fig. 9 is a longitudinal sectional view of the extensionshare, and Fig. 10 is a crosssectional view of the same on the line 3 y of Fig. 9 Fig. 11, perspective views of the parts of the extension-share disconnected.

Ais the frame, of an oblong shape, and having the usual bar, A arranged in one side, over which the earth from the ditch is thrown by the mold-board.

Upon each side of the rear part of the frame A two standards, B B are secured in an upright position. These standards consist of metal straps bent in the form shown, so as toleave open spaces between their sides, in which rollers a a are adapted to run up and down.

0 is a shaft running across the machine and journaled in these rollers a a D is the share, having forwardly, upwardly, and outwardly inclining side cutters, E E secured to its sides and connected by its rear end to the bottom F of the mold-board. The bottom F is connected by one edge to the mold-board proper, F while the front edge of the mold-board lies flush with the rear edge of the side cutter, E The mold-board is supported by a frame-work, b, of flat iron bars bent in the proper form, to which the sheet-steel or other metal mold-board, F is attached. The forward end of the upper section of the frame I) and the upper end of the side cutters, E E are pivoted to a cross-shaft, 0, similar to the shaft 0, arranged and operated as hereinafter shown.

Attached by their lower ends to the lower side ofthe share'D are two bars or braces, G G running backward and upward and branchshaft 0, G G are ,two other braces connecting the bars G G with the upper section of the frame I), while another brace, G connects the same upper section of the frame I) with the center of the shaft 0, as shown. By this .means the mold-board and share are firmly and securely braced and connected pivotally to the shaft 0.

The ends of the shaft 0 outside of the cutters E E and the upper section of the frame I) are journaledin rollers a a, adapted to run up and down'in channels in the inner faces of two standards, 13 B; (See Fig. 5.) These standards are secured by their lower ends in mortises in the frame A, andheld by their upper ends by braces dd. The braces are connected to the standards B B by pins 0 e in the standards fitting into slots in the braces, while the lower endsof the standards B B" have a small degree of play in the frame A, so that the upper' ends of the standards may move slightly forward and backward when the plow is raised and lowered, as hereinafter shown. The standards B B are also strengthened by similar braces, d cl, and each opposite pair of standards are connected together at their tops by cross-tie bars B" B. H H 11 H are four screws, one secured by a strap, h, near each end of each of the crossshafts C 0 and each screw passing upward screw. provided above the tie-bars with handscrew-threads adapted to fit the screws, so that by turning the hand-wheels the screws may run up and down. By this construction it will be seen the plow is suspended wholly from the shafts 0 0 so that the turning of the handwheels 9 g g 9* to the right or left will run the screws H H H H up or downjand raise and lower either orboth ends of the plow.-

in g outward and secured by straps to the OIOSS-a through'the cross-tie bars 13 B ,Yand eachwheels 9 g g g, whose hubs are formed with v The forward end of the plow may thus be raised entirely from the ground when the ditch 1s completed, or for any other purpose. The raising of the forward end of the plow higher than the rear end causes the shaft 0 to move 1n the arc of a circle of which the shaft 0 is the center; but by arranging the standards B B with a small amount of play at their upper ends they will move with the shaft 0 and prevent cramping of the parts. Another advantage gained by this arrangement is that by operating the hand-wheels g and together, or the wheels and 9* together, the plow may be tilted sidewise at an angle to the frame A for ditching on side hills or other irregular places. The principal advantage gained by this construction, however, is that the frame A, which runs upon top of the ground when the plow is in operation, may be raised and lowered to follow the curves of the surface of the ground, while the plow may be drawn through the ground in a straight line, so that the bottom of the ditch will be straight without reference to form of the surface of the ground. By this means ditches may be cut through rolling prairie and similarly-formed land in a uniform shape.

I is a brace, hinged'at one end to the under side of the rear part of the share D, and hinged at the other end to the under side of the rear part of the frame A, to further strengthen the share and mold-board. The share D is formed as shown in Fig. 11, and will be provided with two small side plates, i 41 between whose upper edges and the upper edges of the share the lower ends of the side cutters, E E will be riveted, while an auxiliary extension share or shoe, D will be arranged to fit by its edges beneath the lower edges of the side plates i i,and move back and forth parallel to and in contact with the share D. The front edge of the auxiliary share D will thus be adapted to be extended out beyond the front edge of the share D, as shown in Figs. 1, 7, and 9. The share D is provided with a slot, 112, down through which a lug or eye, n, fast to the share, fits, so that the auxiliary share may be moved back and forth by means of a rod, K, connected by one end to the eye a and running backward therefrom, and said rod adapted to be moved by a screw-wheel, K butting against a bracket, K on the rear part of the frame A, as shown. 1

It frequently happens that stones, buried stumps, and other obstructions are met with in forming ditches, and the share generally runs beneath them and stops the machine until the obstruction is removed by digging down into the earth and removing the obstruction.

By using the auxiliary shoe D in advance of the main shoe D the auxiliary shoe only passes beneath the obstructions; hence when such obstructions are met with it is only necessary to run the auxiliary shoe back from beneath the stone by revolving the hand-wheel K, and lift the plow bodily from the ground by means of the screws H H, to render the stone easily accessible from the rear for its removal. Another advantage gained by this auxiliary share D is that the plow is made to hold itself in the ground better when being used in dry soil. The auxiliary share D is made easily removable from the machine, so that by providing two or more with each machine when one becomes dulled it may be replaced by a sharp one.

In Fig. 2 the shaft 0 is shown provided with screw-threads and nuts t on its ends, by which the upper section of the frame I) and the upper ends of the side cutters, E E may be held outward, while in Figs. 5 and 6 a slight variation in the manner of securing them is shown. This consists in slots i", cut through the shaft 0 in which wedges t are driven to hold the side cutters outward, the wedges thus serving the same purpose as the nuts t. (Shown in Fig. 2.) Angular washers t will be placed on the shaft 0, between the wedges t or nuts t, by adjusting which the side cutters may be set at any angle, as shown in Fig. 6, so that the angle of the cutters may be changed to conform with the ditch being cut.

Much annoyance and delay is caused by grass, roots, and small shrubs clogging the side cutters, E E and to easily and quickly remove them I have invented the device shown in Figs. 3 and 4, consisting in forming the side cutters with channels 1- in their front edges, in which the rear edges of the cutters or knives E E are adapted to be moved up and down. The lower ends of these cutters E 13* are curved backward at r, while their upper ends are curved outward at 1- and provided with holes 1-. The lower points of the knives E E project down between the share D and side plates, ii", as shown in Fig. 1, so that sharp-edged cavities r are formed, in which the grass, 850., as it is forced down by the backward inclination of the cutters, is caught and a large share of it cut loose, thereby greatly relieving the plow; but when the side cutters become clogged with grass, &c., to an extent greater than the cavities o will cut loose, then it is only necessary to move the knives E E upward and downward one or more times by inserting a hook or bar in the hole "1", or by any other means, and then driving them back again into place to cut through the grass, 8m. By this means all such clogging can be easily and quickly removed without stopping the plow or removing it from the ground. Another advantage of this arrangement of the sliding knives E E is that by providing two or more sets of them to each plow when one set becomes dulled or broken it can be easily replaced by another one. The side cutters, E E", are shown formed of a narrow central piece with two wider outside pieces riveted fast thereto, the difference in the widths of the pieces forming the channels for the rear edges of the knives 17 E.

E is an angularly-set knife adapted to cut IIO through the sod in advance of the cutters E E", so as to form a joint in the sod to assist the turning over of the earth by the mold-board.

On the forward end of the frame A two parallel arms, M lVP, are secured, projecting forward and having an angular rimmed wheel, N, journaled across beneath them on a shaft, N One end of this shaft N is adapted to be moved slightly forward and backward by a lever, N so that the wheel N may be turned at an angle to the length of the plow. The lower edge of this wheel N is adapted to cut into the earth in advance of the plow, and is intended to act as a guiding-wheel, to keep the plow in a straight line when set as shown, or to turn the plow to the right or left when set at an angle by the lever N. a toothed segment, M in which a springcatch, M*, on the lever N is adapted to catch, so that the wheel N may be set and held at any angle desired.

On the land side of the rear part of the frame A a plate, P, is secured by one end at .w and the other end adjustable inward and outward by a screw or other means, P The lower edge of this plate P projects down below the frame A, and is curved outward, and is adapted to cut into the earth a short distance away from the edge of the ditch, to act as a landside to hold the plow and counteract the tendency of the plow to be turned around by the pressure of the earth on the mold-board. By adjusting the rear end of the plate outward or inward the draft may be altered or the course of the plow regulated.

The standards 13 B may be formed of metal straps, similar to the standards B B or the standards B B may be formed similar to the standards '13 13*.

Attached to the frame A, in the rear of the lowerrear part of the mold-board F", is a small auxiliary mold-board, F adapted to fill the gap left by the mold-board F when its rear end is elevated by the screws H H and turn the earth over and prevent it falling into the ditch again. The plow by this means will turn the earth over as well with the rear part elevated as when depressed. WVhen the plow is lifted from the ground while in operation, the earth already 011 the mold-board will be lifted with it, and to prevent this earth from falling back into the ditch I arrange a plate, R, pivoted at o to the under side of the frame of the plow, and adapted to be swung outward, as shown by dottedlines at R in Fig. 7, to catch this earth and hold it up until the plow is drawn away from over the ditch, or until it can be removed by hand.

Truck-wheels (not shown) will be used upon which to mount the plow for transportation.

Having described my invention and set forth its merits, what I claim is- 1. In a ditching-machine, the combination of a drag-frame, A, two sets of standards, B B and B B projecting upward in pairs from the frame, cross-shafts C 0 adapted to be The arm M has moved up and down between the respective sets of standards, either both ends together or one end separately, means for raising and lowering the said shafts, a plow suspended in the frame, and means for connecting the plow with and supporting it by the said shafts, substantially as and for the purpose herein specified.

2. The combination of the frame A, having standards B B shaft 0, j ournaled in said standards and adapted to be raised and lowered by screws H H H H, and the mold-board and share of the plow connected to said shaft by base-frame G and braces G G G, substantially as shown.

3. The combination of the frame A, moldboard F share D. shaft 0, base-frame G G and braces G G G substantially as set forth.

4. The combination of the frame A, standards B B B B shafts G0 j ournaled in said standards and adapted to be raised and lowered by screws H H" H H, mold-board F and share D, said mold-board connected to shaft 0 by frame G and braces G G G*, and said share connected to said shaft 0 by side cutters,E E, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

5. In a ditching-plow, the combination of a 1nold-board,F back-supporting frame 12, baseframe G, share D, braces G G G*, and shaft 0, substantially as specified.

6. In a ditching-plow, the combination,with the share D, of an auxiliary shoe, D adapted to be extended forward of said share and drawn backward even with it, substantially as shown.

7. Thecombination of the share D, auxiliary adjustable shoe D side plates, z" i and side cutters, E E substantially as set forth.

8. The combination of the mold-board F share D, having slot m, auxiliary share D having lug a passing down through said slot, and rod K, whereby said auxiliary share D may be adjusted from the rear of the moldboard, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

9. The combination, with the mold-board of a ditching-plow adapted to be raised and lowered, of a fixed auxiliary mold-board, F substantially as set forth.

10. In a ditching-plow, he side cuttersfll E having channels 1" in their forward edges, in combination with knives E E adapted to fit into said channels, substantially as shown.

11. The combination of theshare D, side plates,@" 1'', side c'utters,E E",-having channels a", and the knives E E", substantially as specified.

12. The combination of the shaft 0", having the Slots 1 W ges i beveled washers if, and side cutters, E E substantially as set forth.

13. In a itching-machine, the combination of adrag-frame, A, fay-plow suspended therein, and a cutting guide-wheel, N, adapted to have one f its journals" adjustable forward and backwar an m ans for adjusting the said journal, for the purpose herein specified.

14. The CO bi jation of frame A, arms M M Wheel N, mounted upon a shaft, N, one my hand in presence of two subscribing witend of which is adjustable, and a lever, N,

nesses. substantially as described. 15. The combination, with aditching-plow, JOSEPH HOUSE 5 of an adjustable plate, R, substantially as and Witnesses:

for the purpose specified. O. N. WOODWARD,

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set LOUIS FEESER, Sr. 

